The inventive concepts relate to an apparatus and a method for treating a substrate using liquid.
Various processes (e.g., photolithography, etching, ashing, ion implantation and deposition processes) are performed to manufacture a semiconductor device or a liquid crystal display device. A cleaning process is performed before or after each of the processes for removing contaminants and/or particles generated in each of the processes.
The cleaning process is a process that supplies a treatment solution to a substrate to remove contaminants and/or particles adhered to the substrate. An apparatus for performing a cleaning process may include a treatment solution nozzle and an ultrasonic nozzle. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a treatment solution nozzle and an ultrasonic nozzle of a general apparatus performing a cleaning process. Referring to FIG. 1, a treatment solution nozzle 2 may supply a treatment solution onto a substrate, and an ultrasonic nozzle 4 may provide ultrasonic waves to the treatment solution supplied on the substrate. Bubbles may be formed in the treatment solution provided with the ultrasonic waves. The bubbles may repeatedly contract and expand by the ultrasonic waves so as to be broken, and the particles adhered to the substrate may be removed by a shock wave generated during the breakage of the bubbles.
However, diameters of the bubbles formed by the ultrasonic waves may be in the range of several micrometers to several tens micrometers. On the contrary, a plurality of patterns may be formed on the substrate, and distances between the patterns may be in the range of several nanometers to several tens nanometers. Thus, the bubbles formed by the ultrasonic waves may be difficult to be provided into spaces between the patterns. In other words, it may be difficult to remove particles in the spaces between the patterns.
The bubbles may be unstably provided and may be broken before they are provided into the spaces between the patterns.